Even today, there are a vast amount of military mounted swords on the market, mostly the so-called shin-gunto or the sword issued to officers of the Imperial Japanese Army during the early Showa period (1926-45). If there are a lot now, then immediately after World War 2, with troops returning from the Far East, there were many more. Most collectors would have probably started their hobby by acquiring at least one such sword, which may have been of interest at the time. Although the mounting of the shin-gunto is basically designed on an old tachi, there are a number of variations and some customization. The basic design is of stained brass mounts, a metal scabbard with tachi style fittings and a handle wrapped in brown thread over a white samé (ray skin) Under the handle wrap there area pair of menuki (hilt ornaments) of three cherry blossoms. All metal mounts are decorated with cherry blossom designs, this being the favourite and emotive flower of the samurai. Although the metal scabbard is distinctive, some swords have wooden scabbards, it may be that the sword still retains its leather foul-weather cover, which is shrunk onto the scabbard. Occasionally, leather covers may also be found on the handles, but this is relatively uncommon. The tsuba is usually a solid brass plate, also with a cherry blossom design. There is usually a clip at the lower part of the handle, which passes through a hole in the tsuba and secures the sword in the scabbard. Especially in recent years, the presence of a sword knot is considered desirable.
The problem for many, is deciding on both the quality and age of the blade, especially when confronted with so many swords which all appear so similar. As the value of the sword is primarily in the blade, it is necessary to be able to appraise them with some accuracy. It seems that all types of swords were equally revered by their Japanese owners, even if they were the so-called Showa-to or virtually mass-produced blades of the early Showa period, mostly made in the town of Seki in Gifu prefecture. It is estimated that these swords formed some 80% of all swords surrendered to the Allies and are easily recognized by the small stamp at the top of the nakago (tang) usually under the habaki or collar and above any other inscription. These stamps, either of the characters “Seki” or “Sho” (as in Showa) are army acceptance marks. Any inscriptions such as names and dates are typically carved with loose untidy and “scratchy” characters. Whatever anyone tells you, all swords with these and other small stamps, are mass-produced swords and of little quality. They are usually tempered in oil rather than water and therefore do not have a proper hamon or hardened edge. They also have a somewhat stubby and short shape, even though they are said to be very effective, no jihada (surface pattern) is seen. The swordsmiths of Seki were said to have sprung up like “bamboo shoots after the rain”, their numbers and work were so prolific.
One other type of sword, of slightly better quality than Showa-to, are commonly called Mantetsu swords These were made n Manchuko (Manchuria) and a grain is usually seen in the body of the sword. Swords were made to supply the troops that were “colonizing” this country and they often had patriotic phrases, such as “Koa Isshin” meaning a “Asia as one” inscribed on the nakago. It is said that the steel that was used in making railway lines was ideal and used in their manufacture. Some was even imported from the UK! These swords were considered to be very suitable for use in the cold weather experienced in Manchuria, but there is no difference in the mounting of these swords from the normal shin-gunto.
Possibly another 10% of blades in shin-gunto mounts, were traditionally forged blades of the period (called gendaito) such as those made at Yasukuni shrine in Tokyo and which are much valued today by the Western collector. These swords, known as Yasukuni-to, will often have a suguha hamon (straight hamon) and the swordsmith’s name will always have the Japanese character for YASU (as in Yasukuni) as the first character of his name. Other swordsmith’s often demonstrating great skill, were independent workers and were sometimes contracted to produce swords for the IJA. The martial atmosphere in the 1930’s meant that many swordsmiths thrived and produced fine work which can be valued today at the same level of some antique swords. Another good pointer to swords that were made during the 20th century, is that the first inch or so of the blade, at the handle end, will remain unsharpened. Known as ubu-ha (original edge) this is not always apparent but if it is there, there is a 99% chance that it is of Showa period manufacture.
The final 10% were swords containing antique or family blades, sometimes even koto (pre 1600). As mentioned earlier, even in the standard shin-gunto mount, there was a degree of customization, and I think it fair to say that better swords were more often customized than Showa-to, the owners being probably more affluent. The most common and easily spotted individual feature of this is that rather than a solid-plate tsuba, a pierced tsuba would be present. In a great pile of shin-gunto, therefore, I would advise to look at those with pierced tsuba first! Another quick check, is to see whether or not there is a small family mon on the kabuto-gane or pommel of the sword, always a good indication of a better than average blade.
Following the atomic bombs on both Hiroshima and Nagasaki (August 6th and 9th, 1945) and the entry of Russia into the war against Japan in the same week, Japan finally agreed to surrender. This was by no means an easy thing for a military elite that had always preferred suicide to surrender, but it was realised that the nation risked total destruction by this new weapon. On 15th August, the Showa Emperor Hirohito, read an Imperial Rescript which was broadcast to the entire empire. In this he agreed to “bear the unbearable”, to accept defeat and the Allies’ terms of unconditional surrender. McArthur immediately implemented plans to occupy the homeland and Mountbatten, as Supreme Commander South East Asia, consolidated his troops on the mainland, especially in Malaya, Indo-China (Vietnam) and Burma.
Mountbatten fully understood the symbolic importance of the Japanese sword to the officer corps of the Imperial Japanese Army and Navy. It had been designed and incorporated into the uniform of all officers with the sole purpose of inspiring them with the spirit of Bushido. Such an important symbol allowed even those of humble origins to become samurai briefly and to die whilst waving a samurai sword! Whilst it would be a natural thing to disarm the enemy, Mountbatten decreed that all swords would be handed over at formal surrender ceremonies, thus humiliating the owners. This was an understandable sentiment considering the ferocity of the merciless jungle fighting that characterised most of the proceeding 4 years.
There were at least four main surrender ceremonies at which surrender documents were signed:
1) The surrender of all Japanese armed forces throughout the Far East and Japan held on the USS Missouri, Tokyo Bay, 2nd September 1945.
2) Surrender of all forces in China, northern Indo-China and Formosa at Nanking, 9th September 1945
3) Surrender of all forces in South East Asia at Singapore, 12th September 1945
4) Surrender of all Japanese forces in Manchuria, Korea, south Sakahlin, the Kurile Islands, at Hsinking, Manchuria on 21 August 1945
Surrender
at Kuala Lumpur, September 1945
This humiliation was certainly keenly felt by the deprived owners. As previously mentioned, on a number of swords, usually owned by those of higher rank and often with superior blades, a small silver family mon or crest, about the size of a 5p piece, could be found on the kabuto-gane or pommel of the handle. In some cases, this mon was defaced and obscured before the sword was handed over, in order that the family name was not shamed and brought into disrepute. Others wrongly believed that the swords would eventually be returned to them and attached their personal details to the sword, either by tying on a small wooden tablet or a piece of cloth on which they wrote. Often these may be still seen attached to swords and has led a few well-meaning Westerners attempting to identify the owners and return the swords to them. Such philanthropy is to be discouraged, as apart from the great complications involved, many modern Japanese do not wish to be reminded of their recent inglorious militaristic past and finding it an embarrassment, would not want the sword back! A further complication is that Showa-to (mass-produced swords) remain illegal in Japan as they are considered as merely a weapon from their fascist military past, of no artistic or cultural value. If found in Japan they are immediately confiscated and destroyed. Fortunately this does not apply in the UK, even after the recent legislation, and certain militaria collectors have done important research and made significant collections of Showa-to.
Although surrender ceremonies in the field, seemed to have started in late August and September 1945, a number did not happen until as late as June 1946. Local insurgents, with nationalistic and anti-colonial ideals in a number of locations such as Malaya and Java, could not be controlled by the few Allied troops, whose numbers were thinly stretched over vast distances. The Japanese were therefore, left in control as they were the only armed and organised resistance to such insurgents. They were not required to surrender their weapons until the Allies were fully in control, some months later and repatriation of the Japanese troops was begun.
Gunto
tsuka with silver Mon and knot
As many of these swords were carried throughout the war, in humid jungles and through monsoon rains, condition is often poor and I have frequently encountered good old swords that were damaged beyond repair. As a case in point, I was given an old sword, surrendered in Burma, which was contained in 19th century furniture of no great quality, a round iron Musashi-style tsuba and a blade indistinctly signed Norimitsu, a talented 15th century swordsmith from Bizen province. Unfortunately, the blade was damaged beyond repair. There was some evidence that a leather cover had been put over an old lacquer scabbard and I decided to remove the leather. As I cut it off, a fabulous black-lacquered scabbard in the so-called inro or ribbed style, began to appear. On fully removing the leather, it became apparent that the scabbard had been broken in two and a wooden splint had been wrapped around it. This was quite a poignant experience as it was clear that this sword had belonged to an officer of samurai lineage and that he had taken one of his families’ swords to the latest war. Further, it had been necessary to perform a field repair and the sword had obviously seen much use and suffered badly. I was also seeing something that had last been seen by the original owner some 60 years ago and I felt that the least I could do was to give this sword an honourable retirement rather.
It would appear that in the UK most surrender swords came from the Burma theatre. In some cases swords were individually surrendered to a senior officer whilst at others, many swords were given up at the same time. It is thought that senior ranks made personal presentations whilst the lower ranks at a garrison simply laid down their swords, which were then gathered up and distributed amongst the victors as war trophies. The diminutive figure of Lieutenant-General Kawada Tsuchitaro,
Kawada
Tsuchitaro surrenders his sword
surrendered his sword to Major-General W A Crowther DSO, 17th Division commander at Thaton in Burma. This took place in the last week of October 1945. Actually this sword has a shortened old blade that has subsequently been attributed to Kaga Kiyomitsu (late 16th century). It is contained in a leather covered kyu-gunto scabbard (western saber style) on which the name of Kawada is brushed in black ink and it has a normal army handle. The overall size is rather small and light as may be expected for such a short man. The blade has the results of two cutting tests carried out in the Kanbun period (1661-1672) inscribed on the tang. This was originally inlaid in gold but only a few traces now remain. It seems, as was reasonably common practice, that this sword and many others, were distributed amongst all ranks as souvenirs. This one ended up being given to a certain Lance Corporal Russell. We know this as a “Retention Slip” was issued by SEAC (South East Asia Command) permitting him to keep the sword as a war trophy. Although a number of such slips were issued, many seemed to have acquired swords without them. This particular sword was purchased from the veteran’s grandson and I wonder if it was L/Cpl Russell who painstakingly picked the small amount of gold from the inscription, thereby greatly devaluing Kawada’s sword. It is rumoured that returning troops who believed they had no permission to keep swords, jettisoned them overboard into the waters surrounding ports such as Liverpool, rather than risk prosecution for looting!
Of special interest is the occasional letter from the original owner, which accompanied the surrendered sword. Such letters often expressed great respect for the victors and attempted to explain the importance of the Japanese sword. In a number of cases, the characteristics of the actual swordsmith were explained in great detail. For instance, a certain Major General Kimio Omoto, C/O of the 25th Independent Mixed Brigade in Sumatra, wrote to Col Rossier DSC on 25th March 1946 congratulating him on his promotion and presenting him with his sword. In this letter, he explains the history of old swords and the details of Magaroku Kanemoto from Mino province in the late 16th century. In detail he describes the characteristics of the blade’s shape and sanbon-tsugi hamon. He also expresses regret that the “scabbard of the sword is more or less dilapidated” but that this would not devalue the sword itself. This sword, together with another Showa period piece from 2nd Lt Sakae Ogata, an interpreter, may now be found in the Royal Lincolnshire Regiment Museum.
Retention
slip for Kawada’s sword
Distribution
of swords in the Indian Army
I think the feeling of these officers is well expressed by Captain Shigemi Ohno at Padang, Sumatra writing on the 18th April 1946 to the “Officer Commanding, Field Security Section”. Here, after fully describing at some length, a sword by Kanewaka, he expresses his personal feelings as follows:
“ I cannot help
heaving a deep sigh of sorrow in parting with my beloved sword, my spirit, with
which my ancestors went to war and which my father himself handed over to me
when I set out from home for this war, praying for my heroic victory in every
action. But now we are finally going to be obliged to entrust everything to you,
it is my pleasure that this sword can be presented to you with whom I worked
together to this day with interest and respect, and be kept safely in your
hands.”
Letters
such as this provide added interest and value to particular swords and
personalize the sword for the collector.
It was probably the high spot of his career when Mountbatten received the surrender of the Japanese at Singapore. This took place on 12th September 1945 at the Municipal Hall (now called City Hall). The Japanese side was headed by one General Itagaki Seishiro, commander of the 7th Area Army, who had originally planned to resist but had deferred to the Imperial Rescript. Mountbatten’s opposite number on the Japanese side was Field Marshal Count Terauchi Hisaichi. Terauchi, who had had a stroke in May 1945, was based in Saigon at the end of the war and because of his illness, was unable to attend, so Itagaki surrendered Singapore on his behalf. It is thought that at this time, Itagaki gave Mountbatten a sword made by Kotani Yasunori at the Yasukuni shrine (see above).
Itagaki
at Singapore surrender ceremony, September 12th, 1945
Mountbatten received at least two swords personally from Terauchi on 30th November 1945 in Saigon. Terauchi had these family swords flown over from Japan. One of the swords was a silver mounted tachi (slung sword) dating from 1292, whilst the other was a wakizashi (short sword) dated 1412. The former is believed to be at Broadlands in England whilst the latter, is now part of the royal collection at Windsor Castle.
The situation for McArthur’s occupying troops was completely different to those of Mountbatten’s, the Chinese or the Commonwealth troops where, senior officers generally accepted swords on what had been the field of battle. Of course, there was a great ceremony at which the Japanese government formally surrendered and signed the appropriate documents, aboard the SS Missouri anchored in Tokyo Bay on 2nd September 1945. This was attended by senior officers from all the Allied powers, but McArthur intended that the occupation of Japan be mainly an American affair. The island hopping total warfare of his advance had left no time for the niceties of formal surrender ceremonies, although a number of swords had been acquired by Marines along the way. Mostly, combat troops were not considered appropriate for the occupation and quite quickly they were sent home and exchanged for occupation troops.
McArthur, the new shogun of Japan, decided to completely disarm the Japanese population. This was to include all Japanese swords, even those ancient swords that might be found in shrines and museums. All swords had to be taken to local police stations where they were collected up and many thousands were destroyed. It is not known how many were hidden under the floorboards or in the roof space to avoid this edict, but there were heavy penalties for anyone caught concealing weapons. Many were collected, broken up and shovelled into furnaces such as the one at Osaka illustrated here. (Incidentally, the sergeant pictured here holding a very long sword, finished his tour of duty in Japan and went home without a single sword as a souvenir!) However, many of his colleagues were able to acquire swords by various means and ship them back to the US. This included the looting of museums and shrines and provided the basis of several important American collections in the years following the cessation of hostilities.
Piles
of swords ready for destruction in Osaka (1945 / 46)
The very existence of Japanese sword was under threat and it was indeed fortunate that certain enlightened people in the administration saw that this was destroying an important Japanese cultural asset and the destruction was replaced by a registration system that still exists today. As the destruction was stopped, many of the already confiscated swords were placed in a secure warehouse in the Sugamo district of Tokyo, where they seem to have remained undisturbed for some 55 years! Several years ago, it was decided that an attempt would be made to identify the previous owners of these swords, which numbered some 4,000. These efforts met with limited success and the unclaimed swords are still being sold off, although some have been given to museums. Although I have no precise details, I am assured that none are off absolute top quality.
My sincere thanks to Mr. Richard Fuller for his kind permission to quote extensively from his definitive works on the Japanese military and Japanese military sword.
Clive Sinclaire
Bexley, May 2008
Prepared for publication in Classic Arms and Militaria.